A Life for the Tsar King/Ashton

[Janet Ashton]

Part 3 of the coronation schedule: -

https://coronationofnicholasii.wordpress.com/2016/07/19/coronation-schedule-pt-3/

This entry brings the schedule as far as the coronation day itself, and beyond. By now, you might be feeling overwhelmed by the sheer number of ceremonies dinners, guests and events. So imagine how it felt to be there, changing your clothes every few hours and constantly subject to the attentions of hairdressers (men could not escape; some of the pages left very amusing memories of their ordeals with the tongs).

To make matters worse, it was extremely hot by the day of the coronation, and it's hard to estimate who was more uncomfortable - those crammed into the Cathedral, or those standing in the sun outside waiting to watch the entourage pass.

Three days later, we have an event that proved to be one of the most enjoyable to write about: the grand coronation gala. Picture the squirming embarrassment of the young Emperor, who had to witness his former mistress dance a solo part right under the eyes of his wife, while the audience tittered knowledgeably behind their fans. And through fear of his Uncle Vladimir, even the Tsar of All the Russias was powerless to stop this happening.

[TimM]

The blessings, and the curse, of being a Tsar.

[Janet Ashton]

The blessings, and the curse, of being a Tsar.

Indeed - Nicholas hated it all and most days he simply couldn't wait to get away and be alone with Alix.

Anyway....today's blog entry marks a change in the mood of the coronation. From the moment of the Khodynka Disaster, the event lost all sense of gaiety or celebration, and the very atmosphere of the city changed as the smell of data permeated everything, spurred on by the great heat.

Yet the ceremonies continued. In the book, we examine reactions to the disaster in detail, and bring you much new information about Khodynka, including the reactions of the Grand Duke Serge and of his wife Ella, which may change your views of both of them to some extent. There is also some startling new information about the promises Nicholas made to his people.

https://coronationofnicholasii.wordpress.com/2016/07/20/coronation-schedule-part-4-the-disaster/  

[TimM]

Nicholas hated it all and most days he simply couldn't wait to get away and be alone with Alix.

You gotta feel bad for Nicky.  His reign got off to a rather rocky start, because of the Khodynka Disaster and it only went downhill from there.  Of course, we all know how it ended.

Nicky was a nice guy, but he was not suited to be Tsar.  If he and Alix could have just retired to the Crimea, I think he would have been perfectly happy.

[Janet Ashton]

You gotta feel bad for Nicky.  His reign got off to a rather rocky start, because of the Khodynka Disaster and it only went downhill from there. 

Indeed, and Greg and I discuss this fact in the book (as you'd expect! :-) ). We think, though, that he could have had a successful reign despite Khodynka if he had handled the tragedy differently. Other reigns also got off to rocky starts, but the way Tsars reacted determined the outcome. Khodynka became pivotal to everything that happened for the next twenty years.
 
At the beginning of the book we "look at people looking at Nicholas" and discuss the different expectation they had of this young man and his wife, who was generally considered to be British and liberal, standing together at the verge if the twentieth century. Not everyone had positive expectations of him, but a lot did (it's interesting to compare who expected what), and that's what makes it all such an important moment in Russian history after the entrenchment of Alexander III's reign. There was so much hanging on the question of what sort of Tsar Nicholas would turn out to be.

[Janet Ashton]

I should also add that because we wanted the book to be about the coronation as a whole, and to have some fun and lightness, splendour and ceremony, travel and gossip in it as well as tragedy, we cut a reasonable amount from the final manuscript about the aftermath of Khodynka (though we still have at least a full chapter out of twelve and much of the postscript on it, obviously; it was so important). This extra material will be published in the European Royal History Journal later this year when we've turned it into a proper article. 

You'll learn a lot that we are confident is new to readers about Moscow's relationship with Serge and Serge's relationship with Nicholas through the Khodynka chapters of the book. Serge's diaries have been published in Russia now and they were very enlightening!

[TimM]

At the beginning of the book we "look at people looking at Nicholas" and discuss the different expectation they had of this young man and his wife, who was generally considered to be British and liberal, standing together at the verge if the twentieth century.

And yet they kept the Autocracy going.  Queen Victoria worked with a Parliament.  You would think that Alexandra, who loved her grandmother, would have considered that.  Yet, she became Ms. Autocracy for reasons I can't explain.  Things needed to change in Russia and they needed to change fast. 

It says something that the British Monarchy, which is Constitutional, is still around nearly a century after the First World War swept away all the Autocratic Monarchies of Europe (granted that Putin is attempting to bring back the Russian Autocracy, setting himself up as a de facto Tsar, but that's a discussion for elsewhere). 

[Janet Ashton]

Here's the last part of the coronation schedule.

https://coronationofnicholasii.wordpress.com/2016/07/22/coronation-schedule-part-5-the-end/

Notice how they spent their days in the aftermath of Khodynka, and where they went on holiday. Perhaps they could have made a better choice. We give quite lot of space in the last part of the book to the question of guilt for Khodynka, and the relationships between the principle players (Vorontsov-Dashkov as well as Serge and Nicholas and lesser officials). It all throws quite an interesting light, we thought, on why people formed the views they did of Alexandra, and whether they were right or wrong.
:-)

[TimM]

I'm guessing the book will not be released here in Canada until a later date. 

Neither the Chapters Indigo site, nor the Canadian Amazon site even acknowledge its existence 

[Ally Kumari]

Will it eventually be possible to order either via hoogstraten.nl or bookdepository?

[Greg_King]

It is available on Amazon now - but it may not be listed separately on Amazon Canada, so you might need to order directly from Amazon or from Eurohistory (if anyone needs information please let us know!).

And yes, it will be available at Hoogstraten as soon as they receive their copies!

But if anyone needs ordering information or help in obtaining a copy please let us know.

[Greg_King]

Also wanted to add it is available (or will be shortly) at Galignani in Paris, and can also be ordered directly from Eurohistory - you can contact Arturo at

aebeeche@mac.com

or write to

Eurohistory.com
6300 Kensington Avenue
East Richmond Heights, CA 94805

Any problems - please let us know!

[Eurohistory]

https://www.amazon.com/Life-Tsar-Triumph-Coronation-Nicholas/dp/194420704X?ie=UTF8&*Version*=1&*entries*=0

The AMAZON page is set up for international distribution.

The book should also be listed in AMAZON.co.uk by early next week!

[Eurohistory]

Furthermore, on AMAZON, the book is setup for international sales as well.

The listing on AMAZON.co.uk will be setup for sales within the UK and the European Union.

Many clients and subscribers who have purchased and received the book have shared their very positive impressions about it with us.

I believe that Janet and Greg did an amazing job!

Regards, Arturo Beéche

[TimM]

It is available on Amazon now - but it may not be listed separately on Amazon Canada, so you might need to order directly from Amazon

Got it.  Thanks.